Swimming pool brush



Jan. 10, 1967 R. FORTUNE 3,296,643

SWIMMING POOL BRUSH 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Nov. 5, 1964 FIG. 3.

INVENTOR RAY FORTUNE ATTORNEY Jan. 10, 1967 .R. FORTUNE SWIMMING POOL BRUSH Filed Nov. 5, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR RA Y F0 F? TUNE ATTORNEY United States Patent ()fifice 3,296,643 SWIMMING P001. BRUSH Ray Fortune, 9240 Enico Ave., Northridge, Calif. 91324 Filed Nov. 5, 1964, er. No. 409,172 8 Claims. (Cl. 15201) The present invention relates to a brush for use in the cleaning of a swimming pool.

An object of the invention is to provide a brush which may be manipulated by an operator from the walk adjoining the swimming pool area, and which brush will conform to the surface outline of the bounding walls, and base of the pool. Thus the brush will adjust itself to the pool enclosure whether it be curved of flat, to the end that the operator may thoroughly scrub the pool walls and base.

A further object is the provision of a swimming pool brush simple construction, inexpensive in cost of mann facture, foolproof in operation, of li ht weight, easily manipulated, not subject to manfunction, and which is generally superior to brushes for the purpose intended now known to the inventor.

With the above mentioned and other objects in view, the invention consists in the novel and useful provision, formation, construction, association and relative arrangement of parts, members and features, all as shown in a certain embodiment in the accompanying drawings, described generally, and more particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the drawing:

FIGURE 1 is a fragmentary, perspective view of a section of a swimming pool enclosure with the brush of the invention within said enclosure;

IGURE 2 is a fragmentary front elevation of the invention;

FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary front elevation of the brush, certain parts being removed to illustrate elements of the invention;

FIGURE 4 is a sectional view on the line 4-4 of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 5 is a fragmentary sectional view on the line 5-5 of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary sectional view on the line 66 of FIGURE 2; and,

FIGURES 7, 8, and 9, are front elevations, partly in fragment, showing various positions which may be assumed by the brush assembly in contacting respectively, plane, concave, and convex surfaces.

Referring now to the drawings, and particularly to FIGURE 1, I have shown a pool enclosure 1 which includes the usual side and end walls 2 and 3, both walls being sloped or curved downwardly to merge, as shown at 4 with the base wall 5. The pool walls and base are often difficult to clean and the present invention provides a brush assembly which permits the brush assembly to conform to the contour of the pool walls and base whereby a given pool area is engaged by the entire brush assembly to loosen dirt therefrom in the well understood manner.

The swimming pool brush includes an elongated handle 10 connected at one end to a brush head designated generally as 11. The brush head is connected to the handle 3,296,643 Patented Jan. 10, 1967 by means of a mounting plate 12. The brush head includes an assembly of brush sections 13, in the present instance four, as shown at 14, 15, 16, and 17 The brush sections are of articulated form in that the sections are interconnected as hereinafter set forth. Referring to FIG- URE 4, the brush sections are interconnected by a bridging bracket designated generally as 20, and by links 21 and 22. Thus the brush sections 13 shown at 14 and 17, are substantially of H shape in plan while the brush sections at 15 and 16 are substantially Z shape in plan.

The different brush sections all include stocks or backs 25 which secure bristles designated generally as 25a. The back 25 of the brush at 14 is slotted at 26 to provide two leg portions 27 and 28 joined at 29, the sides of the leg portions being parallel with the leg 28 of greater length than the leg 27 so as to provide an extension at 30. The slot at 26 provides two equal width legs. The brush 17 is formed indentically with the brush at 14 while the brushes 15 and 16 are of identical construction. The The brush at 15 includes two legs 31 and 32 interconnected at 33. The leg 31 of the brush at 15 is connected to the extension 30 of leg 28 and the legs 31 and 32 of the brushes at 15 and 16 overlap and the same is true for the extension 30 of the brush shown at 17 in its overlap relationship with leg 32 of the brush shown at 16. The width of all brush backs is the same, or substantially so. When the various backs of the brushes are interconnected an articulated brush assembly results.

The bridging bracket 20 is formed to provide two spaced apart legs 50 and 51 which lie in the same plane. The bridging bracket is formed from one piece of material and the lower edge thereof is concave as shown at 52. The end edges of the bridging bracket may be convexedly curved as shown at 53 and 54 to form with edge 52 the legs 50 and 51. The top edge of the bracket is substantially straight. The legs 50 and 51 straddle the brush shown at 15 and are received between the legs and leg extensions shown at 30 and 31 of the brushes at 14 and 15 while the opposite leg 51 is received between the leg 32 of the brush at 16 and the leg extension 31) of the brush at 17. The bridging bracket legs and brush backs are transversely bored to receive bolts passed therethrough and secured by the usual nuts, as shown at 60, 61, 62, 63, and 64.

The links 21 and 22 are identical construction and interconnect pairs of the brushes. The link 21 interconnects the brushes at 14 and 15 while the link 22 interconnects the brush at 17 with the brush at 15. The connection is through the bolts used to interconnect adjacent brushes. As both links are of identical construction, the link 21 will be described. Link 21 has two legs 72 and 73 in angular relation, the leg 73 terminating in an angular end 74 which is transversely bored to allow passage of the bolt shown at 60 therethrough. Leg 72 is transversely bored adjacent its end to allow passage of the bolt at 62 therethrough. The top edge of leg 73 is substantially straight while the top edge of the leg 72 is curved as shown at 76. The bottom edge of the link diverges from the end 74 and then is curved the same as the top edge 76. The link 22 which is identical, as stated, with link 21 has its leg 72 transversely bored and carried on the bolt shown at 62. The outermost end of the link is secured to the bolt shown at 64 for the brush shown at 17 To stabilize articulated movement between the different brushes of the assembly, the mounting plate 12 connected to the handle 10 has a bifurcated extremity as shown at 80 and 81 in FIGURE 6, and a semi-circular backing plate 32 abuts the members 80 and 81. The bridging bracket 20, the bifurcated extremities of the mounting plate 12 and the backing plate 82 are provided with aligned transverse bores through which bolts 83 and 84 are passed. The bolts are secured by nuts. Carried on the bolts 83 and 84 and between the backing plate 82 and the bridging bracket 29 are anti-friction rollers 85 and 86. The peripheries of the rollers are adapted to engage the curved upper edges 76 of the links 21 and 22. Thus, movement of the brush structure to its different positions such as shown in FIGURES 7, 8, and 9 causes movement of the links and the anti-friction rollers stabilize such movement. In this regard, it is to be observed that the leg 50 of the bridging bracket supports contiguous ends of the brushes at 14 and 15 through the medium of the bolt at 61. The opposite leg 51 carried on the bolt at 63 holds contiguous ends of the brushes at 16 and 17. Thus, the weight of all of the brushes is carried by the bridging bracket. The anti-friction rollers at 85 and 86 act as thrust bearings for the links.

The operation, uses and advantages of my invention are as follows.

The brush backs are all interconnected so as to be relatively movable to provide the articulated brush assembly. When it is desired to clean a pool and particularly the walls and base thereof, the operator grasps the handle 10 and moves the brush into engagement with whatever area of the pool enclosure is to be cleaned. Thus, in FIGURE 1, the brush members have been moved to a convex form of the character shown in FIGURE 8, which convex form will contact concavities of the pool side wall and base. Thus, referring to FIGURE 7, the several brushes are all in alignment the result of the brushes contacting a flat surface such as the base of the pool. When the brush head is manipulated to engage a concave portion of the pool area, as shown in FIGURES 1 and 8, it will be observed that contact of the bristles of said brushes with the concave area 90 causes relative rotation of the several brushes. The bridging bracket holds the interconnected brushes at 14 and 15 in a definite position as does likewise the bridging bracket for the brushes at 16 and 17. In other words, the point of revolution for the two pairs of brushes in each instance is maintained by the pivotal connection between contiguous end of pairs of brushes with a leg of the bridging bracket. This leaves the opposite ends of each pair of brushes to be moved so as to tip or rise relative to the fulcrum point or point of revolution in its connection with the bridging bracket. In FIGURE 8 the links 21 and 22 connect the brushes at 15 and 16 through the bolt shown at 62 so that contiguous ends of the brushes at 15 and 16 will move in a definite relationship. The links 21 and 22 are likewise connected to the outermost extrernities or ends of the brushes at 14 and 17 to the end that as the contiguous ends of the brushes at 14 and 15, 16 and 17 rock upon the bolts shown at 61 and 63, the outermost ends of the brushes at 14 and 17 will be raised which will depress one end of the brushes at 15 and 16 because of the fixed length of the links 21 and 22. To assure stability of the structure when in operation, the top edges 76 of the links 21 and 22 are given a radius of curvature and bear against the rollers at 8 and 86 so that the links follow a definite path of movement. As shown in FIGURE 8, the anti-friction rollers at 85 and 86 are moved to engage the straight top edges 75 of the links 21 and 22. In FIGURE 9 when the brush members assume a relative concave position to engage a convex surface, the links are so moved as to cause the rollers 85 and 86 to engage the curved edges 76 of the links.

It is to be particularly observed that when the brushes at 14 and 17 have their outermost ends either raised or lowered that the inner ends of said brushes are fixed as to the point of revolution or fulcrum point due to the fixed connection of said inner ends with the bridging bracket. The fixed ends also secure the outermost ends of the brushes at 15 and 16, the inner and contiguous ends of said brushes at 15 and 16 being controlled as to movement either downwardly or upwardly by the links 21 and 22.

The brush head is so constructed that movement back and forth of the handle does not affect operation of my device as the backing plate and the bridging bracket confine the operative members; to wit, the ends of the links and the ends of the legs of the bridging bracket, the ends of the links and the ends of the legs of the bridging bracket being received either in slots at 26 or in the space between the overlapped ends of contiguous brushes.

I provide a brush structure which is easily manipulated and will accommodate itself automatically to different curvatures of the pool wall or surface.

I claim:

1. A swimming pool brush, including: a brush head having four aligned end to end brushes comprising first and second intermediate brushes and first and second outer brushes, means pivotally interconnecting contiguous ends of said brushes whereby pairs of the brushes may assume dilierent relative angularities lying in one plane, a fixed bracket secured to the means pivotally interconnecting contiguous ends of the first outer brush with the first intermediate brush and likewise interconnecting the contiguous ends of the second intermediate brush with the second outer brush, and separate links interconnecting the outer ends of the first and second outer brushes with the means pivotally interconnecting the contiguous ends of the first and second intermediate brushes.

2. A swimming pool brush, including: an assembly of four brushes arranged in end to end alignment, said four brushes comprising first and second intermediate brushes and first and second outer brushes, means pivotally connecting contiguous ends of the brushes, a bracket interconnecting the means for the first outer and the first intermediate brush and the second outer with the second intermediate brush to provide fixed pivotal points for the contiguous ends of the brushes and separate links interconnecting the means for the contiguous ends 'for the intermediate brushes with the outermost ends of the first and second outer brushes; said bracket being formed and arranged to carry the weight of the brush assembly, and the link controlling relative angularity between the brushes.

3. A swimming pool brush, including: a series of four independent brushes aranged in end to end elignment, separate means pivotally interconnecting contiguous ends of the brushes, a bracket secured to the pivotal means at spaced points to provide fixed pivotal points for pairs of the brushes, and links pivotally secured to the outermost ends of the outermost brushes andsecured to the pivotal means connecting contiguous ends of the innermost brushes whereby a tipping in either direction of the outermost brushes relative to the fixed pivotal means secured to the bracket produces a tipping movement between the innermost brushes.

4. A swimming pool brush construction, including at least four independent brushes aranged in end to end alignment, and comprising to outer brushes and two intermediate brushes, means pivotally interconnecting contiguous ends Olf the brushes, a bracket bridging the brushes and connected to the pivotal means between the outermost brushes and the intermediate brushes to provide fixed tipping points for said brushes, and a pair of links, one end of each link secured to the means pivotally connecting the contiguous ends of the intermediate brushes, with the opposite ends of said links independently pivotally secured to the outermost ends of the outer brushes.

5. The device as set forth in claim 1, and a backing 5 6 plate, the links being received between the backing plate References Cited by the Examiner and the bracket to stabilize movement of the links. U ITED TATE PATENTS 6. The device as set forth in claim 5, and a handle N S S secured to one end of the backing plate and the bracket. 1394509 1/1933 15-201 7. The device as set forth in claim 6, and thrust bear- 5 3,085,267 4/1963 JacuZZl 15-1-7 ings between the backing plate and bracket for engage- FOREIGN PATENTS ment with an edge of each link to control movement of the links when the brushes assume dilferent relative g ggi b angularities.

8. The device as set forth in claim 7: each link hav- 10 CHARLES WILLMUTH, Primary Examine!- in-g two arms in substantially right angle relationship, FELDMAN, Assistant Examiner with the edge thereof which engages a thrust bearing on a radius. 

3. A SWIMMING POOL BRUSH, INCLUDING: A SERIES OF FOUR INDEPENDENT BRUSHES ARRANGED IN END TO END ALIGNMENT, SEPARATE MEANS PIVOTALLY INTERCONNECTING CONTIGUOUS ENDS OF THE BRUSHES, A BRACKET SECURED TO THE PIVOTAL MEANS AT SPACED POINTS TO PROVIDE FIXED PIVOTAL POINTS FOR PAIRS OF THE BRUSHES, AND LINKS PIVOTALLY SECURED TO THE OUTERMOST ENDS OF THE OUTERMOST BRUSHES AND SECURED TO THE PIVOTAL MEANS CONNECTING CONTIGUOUS ENDS OF THE INNERMOST BRUSHES WHEREBY A TIPPING IN EITHER DIRECTION OF THE OUTERMOST BRUSHES RELATIVE TO THE FIXED PIVOTAL MEANS SECURED TO THE BRACKET PRODUCES A TIPPING MOVEMENT BETWEEN THE INNERMOST BRUSHES. 